Numerous shingle products are known in the prior art. Most shingle products known have a number of goals. First and foremost of these goals is to preclude the elements from entering into the building (typically, a residential dwelling) with which the shingle is used. In furtherance of this objective, shingle manufacturers seek to make their products so they are resistant to hail, wind, and other aspects of the elements which might tend to deteriorate their products over the passage of time.
Another goal of shingle products is resistance to fire. The typical application for shingle products is in use in residential dwellings. Consequently, safety is an important consideration in the construction of a shingle product. It is desirable that a shingle be retardant to fire not only so that it does not, itself, burn, but also that it retards the spread of fire within the structure.
A third goal of all shingle products is that they be easy to apply. Included in this objective are the desires that the product be easy to handle, easy to position, and easy to mount.
The capstone goal of a shingle product is that it be aesthetically pleasing. Because of the particular application of shingle products in the residential dwelling market, purchasers frequently look to the aesthetics of the product in ultimately deciding on a particular product they wish to use.
It is to these dictates and problems of the prior art that the present invention is directed. It is an improved roofing shingle product which serves to solve numerous problems of the prior art without sacrificing desirable characteristics already afforded by prior art structures.